The trauma of my first eyebrow wax haunts me to this day. You see ladies, I was not blessed with perfect eyebrows. Being Spanish, however, has blessed me with tons of very coarse dark brown hair. Ah the joy I’ve had to endure with endless hours of tweezing, waxing, shaving, you name it. After starting out spending endless hours tweezing my eyebrows in front of a magnifying mirror not only did I need glasses, but I needed another option. I decided to try waxing one day. Hot wax being ripped off of my skin is definitely not my idea of fun, but what a girl to do if she wants perfectly shaped eyebrows? How does the saying go? – No pain, no gain. Pain is right, but what could you possibly have to gain from this masochistic act? Are perfectly shaped eyebrows really worth this torture? Up until recently I thought so, but then I met Sadia, owner of Salon THREAD located on 160 East 33rd Street. Sadia introduced me to the art of threading.

So you may be thinking, what does sewing have to do with elegantly arched eyebrows? Is it something that you do while taking your mind off of the pain of having hot wax dripped on your eyebrows? Threading is a hair removal technique, highly practiced in India. It is more of a tradition that is passed down from mother to daughter. Where in the U.S., mothers teach their daughters to braid their hair, in India mothers teach their daughters how to thread. I sat back in one of the salon chairs and I let Sadia go.

She grabbed a spool of simple sewing thread and knotted it to form a trap. She held one end of the thread trap in her teeth and the other in her left hand. The middle was looped through her index and middle fingers of her right hand and away she went. I could feel a rapid back and forth motion and pulling. What she did is used the loop, or thread trap, to trap a series of hairs and pull them out by the root. At first it was a little odd because it felt as though I had five tweezers on me at once, but after the first few tugs I relaxed. I was highly skeptical that this process could remove my tough eyebrow hairs, but after a few minutes I sat up and looked in the mirror. Amazingly enough my eyebrows looked terrific!

I know some of you are thinking, why would I want to sit there having strands of hair ripped a few at a time when I can just get a quick fix with waxing? As Sadia told me some of the best perks about threading are that your skin doesn’t get as red and irritated as with waxing, you won’t get any break outs and the best part of all – there is no nasty residue on your face or clothes. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve walked out of a salon with remnants of wax on my face, neck and sometimes my top. Another great advantage to threading is that it sanitary. Once the thread is used it thrown away and the next client gets a new thread trap After my threading experience I decided to get a little daring and treat myself to my very first facial. I was led to one of the small rooms downstairs where I relaxed in a big comfy chair and inhaled the scented candles that almost put me to sleep. Sabah, the aesthetician proceeded to cleanse my face and then she massaged my skin with Thread’s homemade Almond Massage Cream. After the blood was pumping in my skin she steamed my pores for 10 minutes to warm them up. After my pores were ready Sabah did some extractions and removed the blackheads from my nose and the surrounding area. This was not very relaxing, but I was glad to finally get the every day dirt and grime out of my skin. She then applied 100% aloe vera gel to close my pores and cool me off. Then she used an oatmeal facial scrub to slough off any dead skin and after rinsing off the fresh oatmeal she slathered on a clay mask for about 10 minutes. Once I rinsed my face with cold water and patted my skin dry I looked in the mirror and I barely recognized myself. I not one to walk around without at least applying lip gloss, but I had no qualms about walking upstairs and showing off my new skin. The facial left my skin fresh, glowing and literally took about five years off of me.

Sadia is old school with a bit of flair and her salon reflects that. The atmosphere that oozes when you walk in is small and cozy and she makes sure that her place is kept safe and sanitary. She greets all of her clients individually and doesn’t hesitate to spend time discussing what threading can accomplish or her menu of services which range from massage, facials and henna. Sadia is dedicated to making sure her staff excels at the services they provide. Sadia It was hot outside so as I grabbed a frequent customer card and made my next appointment I skipped out of the salon feeling completely rejuvenated. Sadia caters to a wide range of clientele and her prices modestly range from $8 for an eyebrow thread to $115 for a full body threading. No appointments are necessary for threading, but she highly recommends making one for a facial (or massage). You can book your appointments by calling 212.725-3087 or visit Thread any day of the week at 160 East 33rd Street (between Lexington and 3rd).